Affidavit on behalf of Union Territory of Puducherry in the matter of a news item titled "India lost 2.33 million hectares of tree cover since 2000 Global Forest Watch" which appeared in the Indian Express, April 13, 2024. The report dated April 25, 2025 said that there is no loss …
As a recent policy adviser to the United Nations in a programme intended to address environmental threats in the Amazon, I would caution readers of your Special Report 'Brazil goes to war against logging' (Nature 452, 134
China's Sloping Land Conversion Program (SLCP) is the largest land retirement/reforestation program in the developing world, having the goal of converting 14.67 million hectares of cropland to forests by 2010 (4.4 million of which is on land with slopes greater than 25
Society for Promotion of Wastelands Development (SPWD) has been working in the Rayalseema reion of Andhra Pradesh since the mid 1990s on restoration of Panchayati Raj tanks. Around 40 tanks have been restored in the region by SPWD in collaboration with local Non Government Organizations (NGOs), through formation of representative …
Payments for environmental services (PES) have been distinguished from the more common integrated conservation and development projects on the grounds that PES are direct, more cost-effective, less complex institutionally, and therefore more likely to produce the desired results. Both kinds of schemes aim to achieve similar conservation outcomes, however, and …
The nine year Haryana Community Forestry Project ended successfully in June 2008. It has been rated as one of the best EC funded community forestry project. The partnership of Agriconsulting Rome and AFC, through a technical assistance team was closely involved in this project by providing technical assistance in the …
Generally, the mention of the world tribal gives vivid images of indigenous people living amidst dense jungles, and using a variety of forest resources for their sustenance. Such ecosystem people who enjoy the bounty of nature are the fortunate ones, as there are others who are not so lucky. The …
This paper examines the experiences of private sector participation (PSP) in the water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector. The paper first uses nonmarket failures as a concept to briefly explain why public sector provision of WSS is prone to failures. The widely sought solution, PSP, has not shown encouraging results …
Solid waste management (SWM) is a matter of great concern in the urban areas of developing countries. This report covers very lucidly the present scenario of SWM in urban areas, the system deficiencies that exist, and the steps that need to be taken to correct SWM practices in compliance with …
Visitors to Vrindavan and the fabled land of Lord Krishna, called Braj Bhoomi, are often taken aback by its ramshackle, dirty condition. It has dried up ancient water bodies or kunds, denuded forests and lots of garbage. It also has a dreaded mining mafia running around with dynamite, digging holes …
Few payment for environmental services (PES) schemes in developing countries operate outside of the central state's umbrella, and are at the same time old enough to allow for a meaningful evaluation. Ecuador has two such decentralised, consolidated experiences: the five-year old Pimampiro municipal watershed-protection scheme and the twelve-year old PROFAFOR …
The eco-development programme was initiated in Rajaji National Park to elicit participation of local people in conservation. An analysis of factors influencing the participation of women and men in the eco-development programme in two villages - Ganeshpur and Gungabhogpur, adjoining Rajaji National Park was carried out. On the basis of …
AS WE TURNED off the sixlane Bangalore-Mysore highway, headed down progressively narrower roads, it seemed like we were going to any other village in rural Karnataka. Ragi and horse gram were spread on the road to be threshed by passing vehicles and the paddy fields were dotted with Egrets and …
The authhor has explored the impact of increased responsibility for water management and decision-making in the communes within Madagascar's southern district of Ambovombe- Androy. Ambovombe-Androy is a semi-arid district that comprises 17 communes with marked levels of poverty. Limited water supply, extreme demand, and predatory operators drive water prices up …
South African rural coastal communities have utilised mangrove products for generations. However, the factors determining use are poorly understood and utilisation is rarely acknowledged in natural resource management. Since the post-apartheid government came to power in 1994, there has been a paradigm shift in government forest policy, and Participatory Forest …
This paper is set in the context of a larger development policy debate pertaining to regional inequalities in India. Historically some regions had experienced agricultural prosperity due to their resource endowments especially water. The complementarity between modern inputs and water has boosted the public investments in these regions in order …
Most protected areas in the world are inhabited by people. Mexico is at the forefront of countries where local communities have direct ownership rights of their forests, with an estimated 56-80% of national forests directly owned by communities, within which extraction activities are regulated by Mexican environmental law. However, not …
Returning to Africa after a 10 year absence, Chris Reij could barely believe his eyes. On the arid margins of the Sahara in Niger, all he could see were trees. It was no mirage: after studying land use in Africa for three decades, he was witnessing the untold story of …
This article chronicles the peaceful struggle and eventual success of the people of Alibag, Maharashtra, against the attempts by corporate bodies, with the help of the state government, to grab land for a number of coal-based power plants in the area. Had the plants come up, it would have been …
a conference organized by the Union environment ministry on February 12 in the national capital came out with the Tiger Census 2008 and the State of India’s Forests Report 2005. Both came out with dismal figures: a little more than 1,400 tigers are left in the county; and over 725 …
It's not often that a remote village finds a mention in government tourism brochures. Khonoma in Nagaland does. The village is not exactly an archetypal exotic destination. You have to withstand a two-hour, bone-rattling bus trip from Kohima to get there. But it's a trip worth taking if you are …
